Amex adds new Messenger payment feature

American Express introduced an "Add a Card" feature to its Amex Bot in Facebook Messenger, which will enable eligible US consumers to make purchases on the social media website.

These card members will be able to effortlessly make purchases in games and on shop sections of business pages and participate in Messenger commerce experiences. This added feature will help bolster Amex's chatbot offerings, which already includes giving users notifications about balances, benefits, and recent purchases.

The bot will keep Amex engaged with its consumers at their convenience.

Using a chatbot is aiding Amex in engaging customers. Amex can leverage its chatbot to bring engaging, interactive opportunities directly to where consumers already spend much of their time, rather than pushing those consumers to seek out an additional app — messaging apps are used nine times a day on average, significantly more then the average app, which is used twice daily, according to a study by Flurry Analytics.

Amex is boosting its digital presence while reducing costs. Not only is deploying a chatbot often cheaper than building an app or employing customer service representatives, but it is also an opportunity to push custom offerings to consumers. Amex is already doing this by pushing recommendations and loyalty program information to users based on their purchase history.

Amex has created an added revenue source by leveraging chatbot technology and Messenger. There are thousands of merchants on Messenger gaining consumers on the social media app, and capturing a share of these transactions could prove to be a major opportunity for the credit card issuer.

That's especially true as it continues to push offerings to overcome any potential loses from the sale of its Costco cobrand portfolio to Citigroup earlier this year — Costco had 11.6 million cardholders and accounted for 8% of the firm's $1 trillion global billed business in 2015. It's likely the credit card issuer will continue to push these types of digital initiatives as consumers are increasingly moving to technology to stay informed and make payments.

Advancements in artificial intelligence, coupled with the proliferation of messaging apps, are fueling the development of chatbots — software programs that use messaging as the interface through which to carry out any number of tasks, from scheduling a meeting, to reporting weather, to helping users buy a pair of shoes.

Foreseeing immense potential, businesses are starting to invest heavily in the burgeoning bot economy. A number of brands and publishers have already deployed bots on messaging and collaboration channels, including HP, 1-800-Flowers, and CNN. While the bot revolution is still in the early phase, many believe 2016 will be the year these conversational interactions take off.

Laurie Beaver, research associate for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on chatbots that explores the growing and disruptive bot landscape by investigating what bots are, how businesses are leveraging them, and where they will have the biggest impact.

The report outlines the burgeoning bot ecosystem by segment, looks at companies that offer bot-enabling technology, distribution channels, and some of the key third-party bots already on offer. The report also forecasts the potential annual savings that businesses could realize if chatbots replace some of their customer service and sales reps. Finally, it compares the potential of chatbot monetization on a platform like Facebook Messenger against the iOS App Store and Google Play store.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

AI has reached a stage in which chatbots can have increasingly engaging and human conversations, allowing businesses to leverage the inexpensive and wide-reaching technology to engage with more consumers.

Chatbots are particularly well suited for mobile — perhaps more so than apps. Messaging is at the heart of the mobile experience, as the rapid adoption of chat apps demonstrates.

Chatbots could be lucrative for messaging apps and the developers who build bots for these platforms, similar to how app stores have developed into moneymaking ecosystems.

In full, the report:

Breaks down the pros and cons of chatbots.

Explains the different ways businesses can access, utilize, and distribute content via chatbots.

Forecasts the potential impact chatbots could have for businesses.

Looks at the potential barriers that could limit the growth, adoption, and use of chatbots.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

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The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you've given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of chatbots.